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| Address | 300 Albert Street East Melbourne, Victoria Australia |
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| Coordinates | 37°48′36″S144°58′54″E / 37.8098951°S 144.9816961°E |
| Capacity | 2,300 |
| Construction | |
| Opened | 1969 |
| Demolished | 2015 |
Dallas Brooks Hall known as Dallas Brooks Centre after 1993, was an Australian events venue in East Melbourne, Victoria, between 1969 and 2015, before it was demolished to make way for housing. During its existence, many well-known music concerts and other events were staged there.
Built in 1969 [1] for the by the local chapter of Freemasons, [2] the building was named after the 19th Governor of Victoria, Dallas Brooks. It was designed by the architecture firm Godfrey and Spowers. [3] [4]
In 1974, events promoter John Pinder ran his "Reefer Cabaret" concerts at the hall. These consisted of long concerts with several musical acts, along with comedy, poetry readings, and various theatrical, dance, or novelty shows. The first event took place on 3 August 1974, and featured The Dingoes, Skyhooks, and other bands. After complaints from the Freemasons, Pinder was forced to find another venue. [2]
In 1993 it was renamed Dallas Brooks Centre, [4] or, according to the signage "Dallas Brooks Convention and Function Centre". [5]
In 2001, the National Trust classified Dallas Brooks Hall in 2001, [3] but was not successful in its bid to have the building heritage-listed by Heritage Victoria in 2002. [1]
It was first announced in 2005 that owners Freemasons Victoria wanted to demolish the building, having entered into an agreement with Lend Lease to build a large commercial and residential development. The National Trust stated that it would oppose the demolition. [1] Demolition was again announced in November 2012/ [6]
In 2015, Victoria State Government approval was given to demolish the hall and build residential apartments in its place, comprising two multi-storey towers with a total of 275 units. [7] There was some controversy about the height of the apartment residential development built on the site. [8]
Dallas Brooks Hall was situated opposite Fitzroy Gardens, [7] at 300 Albert Street, East Melbourne. [4]
The National Trust described the building as a landmark, and architecturally "unusual for including numerous halls and meeting rooms in the one complex, and the major concert hall built in Victoria in the post war period before the Arts Centre. It is also a rare example of the 1960s neo-classical revival, derived from a traditional columned temple from the Greek or Roman classical period". [3] The hall had a seating capacity of 2,300. [9]
The hall was the venue of numerous concerts, union rallies, political meetings, [1] graduation ceremonies, public meetings, and lectures through the years. [3]
Malcolm Fraser started the Liberal Party of Australia's campaign for the 1975 Australian federal election with a speech at the Dallas Brooks Hall. [10]
Musicians who played at the Dallas Brooks Hall include:
Skyhooks were an Australian rock band formed in Melbourne in 1973. Their classic lineup (1974–1977) comprised Graeme "Shirley" Strachan (vocals), Greg Macainsh, Red Symons, Bob "Bongo" Starkie, and Imants "Freddie" Strauks (drums).
The Dingoes are an Australian country rock band. They were initially active from 1973 to 1979, and reformed in 2009. Initially based in Melbourne, the band relocated to the United States from 1976. The most stable line-up comprised John Bois on bass guitar, John Lee on drums, Broderick Smith on vocals and harmonica, Chris Stockley on guitar, and Kerryn Tolhurst on guitar. Mal Logan on keyboards joined after Stockley was hospitalised when shot in the stomach by Melbourne drug-dealer, Dennis Allen, who was attempting to gate crash a party. The Dingoes' debut single, "Way Out West", was released in November 1973, and peaked in the top 40 of the Australian Kent Music Report singles chart. Subsequent singles were "Boy on the Run", "Smooth Sailing", and "Into the Night", which did not reach the top 50. They had three top 40 albums, The Dingoes in 1974, Five Times the Sun in 1977, and Orphans of the Storm in 1979.
Federation Square is a venue for arts, culture and public events on the edge of the Melbourne central business district. It covers an area of 3.2 ha at the intersection of Flinders and Swanston Streets built above busy railway lines and across the road from Flinders Street station. It incorporates major cultural institutions such as the Ian Potter Centre, Australian Centre for the Moving Image (ACMI) and the Koorie Heritage Trust as well as cafes and bars in a series of buildings centred around a large paved square, and a glass walled atrium.
Arts Centre Melbourne, originally known as the Victorian Arts Centre and briefly called the Arts Centre, is a performing arts centre consisting of a complex of theatres and concert halls in the Melbourne Arts Precinct, located in the central Melbourne suburb of Southbank in Victoria, Australia.
The Royal Exhibition Building is a UNESCO World Heritage-listed building in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, built in 1879–1880 as part of the international exhibition movement, which presented over 50 exhibitions between 1851 and 1915 around the globe. The building sits on approximately 26 hectares, is 150 metres (490 ft) long and is surrounded by four city streets. It is situated at 9 Nicholson Street in the Carlton Gardens, flanked by Victoria, Carlton and Rathdowne Streets, at the north-eastern edge of the central business district. It was built to host the Melbourne International Exhibition in 1880–81, and then hosted the even larger Centennial International Exhibition in 1888, and the formal opening of the first Parliament of Australia in 1901. The building is representative of the money and pride Victoria had in the 1870s. Throughout the 20th century smaller sections and wings of the building were subject to demolition and fire; however, the main building, known as the Great Hall, survived.
Melbourne Town Hall, often referred to as simply Town Hall, is the administrative seat of the local municipality of the City of Melbourne and the primary offices of the Lord Mayor and city councillors of Melbourne. Located on the northeast corner of Swanston and Collins street in the central business district of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, the building was completed in 1887 and heritage listed on the Victorian Heritage Register in 1974. The building is frequently used for art and cultural events such as concerts, festivals, theatrical plays and exhibitions.
East Melbourne is an inner-city suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 2 km (1.2 mi) east of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Melbourne local government area. East Melbourne recorded a population of 4,896 at the 2021 census.
The Skipping Girl Sign or Skipping Girl Vinegar Sign, colloquially known as Little Audrey is an historic animated neon sign in the inner Melbourne suburb of Abbotsford, and was possibly the first animated neon sign in Australia when first erected in 1936. It advertised the Skipping Girl Vinegar brand, and was placed on top of the factory at 627 Victoria Street, Abbotsford. Removed in 1968, a reproduction was placed on a nearby factory at 651 Victoria Street in 1970 following a public outcry.
The Captain Matchbox Whoopee Band, also known as Soapbox Circus or Matchbox, were an Australian jug band formed in 1969. It centred on Mic Conway on lead vocals, washboard and ukulele; and his brother, Jim Conway, on harmonica, kazoo and vocals. They issued four studio albums, Smoke Dreams, Wangaratta Wahine, Australia and Slightly Troppo (1978), before they disbanded in September 1980. The Conway brothers reformed the group in 2010 as Captain Matchbox Reignited and disbanded again two years later.
General Sir Reginald Alexander Dallas Brooks, was a British military commander who went on to become the 19th and longest-serving governor of Victoria, Australia.
The Regent Theatre was a heritage-listed cinema and entertainment venue in George Street, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, built in 1928 as a flagship for Hoyts, and was demolished in 1988 by property developer Leon Fink.
John Pinder was a New Zealand-born Australian comedy producer, promoter, and festival director based in Melbourne for most of his career. He produced band performances and ran live venues, being especially known for the comedy theatre cafes Flying Trapeze and The Last Laugh. He also co-founded the contemporary circus company Circus Oz in 1977, and the Melbourne International Comedy Festival in 1987.
Australian non-residential architectural styles are a set of Australian architectural styles that apply to buildings used for purposes other than residence and have been around only since the first colonial government buildings of early European settlement of Australia in 1788.
Daddy Cool is an Australian rock band formed in Melbourne, Victoria, in 1970 with the original line-up of Wayne Duncan, Ross Hannaford, Ross Wilson and Gary Young. Their debut single "Eagle Rock" was released in May 1971 and stayed at number 1 on the Australian singles chart for ten weeks. Their debut, July 1971's LP Daddy Who? Daddy Cool, also reached number 1 and became the first Australian album to sell more than 100,000 copies. The group's name came from the 1957 song "Daddy Cool" by US rock group The Rays. Daddy Cool included their version of this song on Daddy Who? Daddy Cool.
The Melbourne City campus of the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology is located in the city centre of Melbourne in Victoria, Australia. It is sometimes referred to as "RMIT City" and the "RMIT Quarter" of the city in the media.
Storey Hall, located at 342–344 Swanston Street in Melbourne, Australia, is part of the RMIT City campus of the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology. It consists of a grand meeting hall constructed in 1887, extended and renovated in 1996, providing a large upper hall, the lower hall as home to RMIT Gallery First Site, and a range of lecture theatres and seminar rooms.
Gregory John Macainsh is an Australian former musician and songwriter. He provided bass guitar and backing vocals for pop rockers, Skyhooks from 1973 to 1980 and subsequently for various reformations. According to Australian musicologist, Ian McFarlane, "Macainsh's biting, provocative songs were the perfect expression of adolescent obsessions and frustrations. With those songs, the band made an enormous impact on Australian social life." Macainsh became an intellectual property lawyer.
Isidor George Beaver, sometimes misspelt "Isidore" and "Beevor", and frequently initialised as "J. G. Beaver", was an architect from England who had a substantial career in Adelaide, South Australia and Melbourne, Victoria. He was also significant in the early history of ice skating in Australia.
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| Authority control databases: Geographic |
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